The Seattle Seahawks quarterback is one of the highest paid players in the NFL. But Wilson’s athleticism doesn’t just end with Football. After graduating from high school, Wilson was recruited by the Baltimore Orioles during the 2007 MLB draft. Deciding to choose an education, Wilson went on to playing college football as well as baseball during his undergrad. With a short stint at playing baseball in the Major League, Wilson is a spectacular athlete who could switch over at any time.
The Celtics point guard is known for his talented fingers on the court, but now Rando is garnering attention for another endeavour, rollerskating. While he was a Rookie in the NBA, Rondo regularly visited roller rinks in his hometown of Louisville until he refined his roller skills to perfection. Rajon may drop dimes and fake out defenders, but put a pair of wheels on this man and then see what happens.
Recently inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, the 5-time NBA All-Star used to play shortstop as a kid. With his 6-foot 3” and 200-pound build, Westbrook’s athleticism, lateral quickness and quick hands could have him working well as a middle infielder. Westbrook could also excel at chasing down deep fly balls in center field.
Tough the 31-year-old Phelps keeps whispering about a potential second retirement – he “retired” before just after the 2012 Games in London – it is still not quite set in stone. As the most decorated Olympian of all-time (28 if you’ve lost count), and a handful of world records, Phelps not only has an amazing stroke but also an amazing swing. In fact the Olympian is also a world-record holder in golf; specifically he holed the longest televised putt in history at 159 feet, back at the 2012 Dunhill Links. Known to set goals and accomplish them, golf definitely lies on Phelps list of ‘things to do.’
Known as “The King of Clay,” the Spanish professional tennis player faced a difficult problem when he was only 12-years-old: continue to focus on tennis or his other love, soccer. Nadal wasn’t just “okay” at the European favorite sport, he was top-notch, with a promising striker career in his midst. Soccer even runs deep in his blood, his uncle Miguel Angel Nadal starred in three World Cups and played for Barcelona, among other clubs. Rafa was even part of the winning 14-and-under Spanish Championship team, at the age of 12, showcasing his skill on the court as well as the pitch.
While the whole world knows what kind of damage Kyrie can do on the basketball court, few know of the damage he can cause on the concrete jungle. The 3-time NBA All-Star Cleveland Cavaliers point guard was an avid skateboarder in his teens. Able to hold down his own at some of the most famous skate parks in the world, Irving even has his own “Skateboard” shoe with sports giant Nike. With his fancy footwork on the deck, 2020’s Tokyo Olympics might see Kyrie competing in two events.
The 21-year-old is considered one of the best right backs in the Primer League. Having started his soccer career in the youth teams of Barcelona, Bellerín transferred to the North London club of Arsenal where he’s been playing for the first team since 2013. The Spaniard is not only known for his skills on the pitch, but for his renowned speed. Héctor currently holds a 40-meter sprint record of 4.42 seconds, which is faster than “Triple-Triple” gold medalist Usain Bolt. Bolt clocked in a time of 4.64 seconds at the 40-meter mark when he set the world record for the 100-meter sprint. Could we see the young player transition to a career on the track?
The off-again/on-again Cleveland hometown hero could have been a professional football player. Marking his career start as a freshman in the state playoffs, LeBron went on to earn All-Star honors in both his sophomore and junior football seasons playing wide receiver. Possessing the skills to be a standout football player, James gave up the sport to concentrate on his future in basketball…which included finally winning the Championship for his hometown. At 6-foot 8″ and 250 pounds, James most likely would take up a tight end position.
Making a lot of waves in the news lately is current UFC Featherweight and Lightweight Champion Conor McGregor. The Irish mixed martial artist is a dominant force over at the Ultimate Fighting Championship, having only started his career in 2008. With ongoing talks of a possible fight between championed boxer Floyd Mayweather and Conor himself, would a match really ever reach fruition despite Conor lacking any professional boxing experience? Perhaps, since McGregor does have boxing skills in his bag, having taken up the sport at the age of 12 – under two-time Olympian Phil Sutcliffe no less – and later becoming an All-Ireland boxing champion at the youth level. It has also been stated that McGregor’s boxing may be his best skill, considering the majority of his victories are by knockouts via punches. Floyd look out.
The man who started this whole conversation. What will Bolt do now that he’s done beating multiple records and winning multiple golds at the largest sporting stage in the world? Turn to soccer. With reported talks already going on between the Jamaican sprinter and German Giant’s Borussia Dortmund, Bolt may likely take his speed onto the pitch. Having repeatedly stated his desire to play for Manchester United after he retires, Bolt’s football skills are there having played since his youth. And if you’re wondering what position he would play, it would be that of a striker.
it can be both physically and mentally taxing regardless of the discipline. With a common goal to succeed, professional athletes have used this drive to propel themselves to compete, though usually within one area. However, there are a select few exceptional sportsman that have a passion and talent for multiple sports and have managed to excel at two. Take for example Bo Jackson, one of the greatest double athletes of all-time to ever exist. Bo’s extreme athleticism led him to a double career in both the NFL and NBA, even earning himself the All-Star status in both leagues, the only athlete to ever achieve this. Another remarkable example who has dominated at two fields is Deion Sanders. Having done what no other competitor has been able to do before him, Sanders played a professional baseball and football game all within a span of 24 hours.
These amazing sportsmen have pushed boundaries to prove that their abilities and athleticism need not be contained into one specific discipline. This has got us thinking, who are some of today’s athletes that possess the abilities to dominate in a similar way. And with Usain Bolt’s recent talks about coming out of retirement to play soccer to Conor McGregor’s push to fight boxer Floyd Mayweather and obtaining his boxing license, we take a look at 10 of today’s athletes who could pull off double duty.
Russell Wilson
Baseball
Russel
Westbrook
Baseball
Rafael Nadal
Soccer
Héctor Bellerín
Sprinting
Conor McGregor
Boxing
Rajon Rondo
Rollerball
Michael Phelps
Golf
Kyrie Irving
Skateboarding
LeBron James
Football
Usain Bolt
Soccer